Coveted Minnesota Prep Lineman Prepares for Next Big Stage

Can Cretin-Derham Hall keep its aerial circus and powerful ground game going for one last game? Seantrel Henderson thinks so.

Henderson, the massive senior offensive lineman and top-ranked recruit in the country, ends his stellar Raiders football career on Minnesota's brightest stage Friday. That's when No. 2 Cretin-Derham (11-1) faces No. 1 Eden Prairie (12-0) in the Class 5A state championship at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.

(Update: Cretin-Derham beat Eden Prairie 16-5.)

All eyes have been on Henderson, who has been very deliberative in his college selection process and is not expected to announce his decision until February's National Signing Day.

Henderson, who made an unofficial visit to the University of Iowa last Saturday with teammate/quarterback Mark Alt, continues to list Florida, Oklahoma, Notre Dame, Ohio State, USC and Minnesota among his favorites.

"I pretty much take everything in, like all the information at every school that I go to," Henderson said of his approach to recruiting. "I'm going to try to have a notebook of everything just so I can compare all the schools when I'm done."

At 6-foot-8 and 300 pounds, Henderson is also an accomplished basketball player and will soon join the Raiders team.

Of course, Henderson's immediate focus is on Eden Prairie, which earned an opportunity to pursue a seventh state title with a stifling 17-0 victory over No. 10 Mounds View last Friday. The Eagles limited Mounds View to 47 total yards on 39 plays, forced four turnovers and registered six sacks.

Cretin-Derham Hall, meanwhile, earned its shot at a second title with an easy 45-19 win over Brainerd. The Raiders amassed 342 yards in the first half and 563 in the game. Alt threw two touchdowns on 15-of-17 passing for 233 yards.

Cretin-Derham Hall advances to the big-school championship game for the seventh time since 1988. Eden Prairie easily beat Cretin-Derham 50-21 in Henderson's sophomore season in the 2007 title game.

Friday's game won't be Henderson's last at the prep level. He also has committed to play in the 10th annual U.S. Army All-American Bowl on Jan. 9 at the Alamodome in San Antonio. The game will be broadcast nationally by NBC.

The 2010 Under Armour All-America game kicks off the post-season all-star games on Jan. 2 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla. The game will be broadcast nationally by ESPN.

Henderson is one of six players ranked among the top-10 recruits in the Class of 2010 by Rivals.com who remains uncommitted.

The group includes No. 4 Lache Seastrunk (running back, Temple, Texas), No. 5 Ronald Powell (defensive end, Moreno Valley, Calif.), No. 6 Jackson Jeffcoat (defensive end, Plano, Texas), No. 7 Marcus Lattimore (running back, Duncan, S.C.), and No. 8 Sharif Floyd (defensive tackle, Philadelphia).

Henderson has held the top spot the entire recruiting season.

"Physically one of the biggest offensive linemen in the country," Rivals.com recruiting analyst Barry Every writes of Henderson.

"Henderson will remind some observers of Ohio State offensive tackle Mike Adams. Upper and lower body structure is in proportion and he has the powerful base to blow anyone off the line of scrimmage.

"Henderson has offers from almost every college in the country, and once he starts year-round focus on football, he should develop into a first-round draft pick."

Rivals.com has been in existence since the Class of 2002. That group of prospects was led by top-ranked quarterback Vince Young of Houston.

Thirty-six of the Rivals100 in the class of 2002 made it to the NFL, including Young, who starred at the University of Texas and was the third overall selection in the 2006 Draft by the Tennessee Titans.